


Beside You In Time

by Ghanisfics



Series: Beside You In Time [1]
Category: 30 Seconds to Mars, Actor RPF, American Actor RPF, Colin Farrell RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2010-09-09
Updated: 2010-09-09
Packaged: 2017-10-11 15:05:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/113707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ghanisfics/pseuds/Ghanisfics
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A perpetual angst trip for Tomo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beside You in Time 1. Departure From the Earth

**Author's Note:**

> This is a vampire story inspired by the video for 'Attack' and because the guys themselves can't stop talking about vampires.

Title: Beside you in time 1. Departure from the earth  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Fandom: 30 Seconds To Mars  
Pairing: Tomo/Shannon, Jared/Shannon  
Rating: NC-17  
Warnings: (apply to the whole series) slash, incest slash, AU, violence, rough language, main character death, angst.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction. And it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: Myr  
Mood creation: 'Bug Eyes' and 'Canyon behind her' by dredg; 'Beside you in time' by Nine Inch Nails, 'Attack' by 30 Seconds To Mars.

 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

_Bring back those good ol' days   
Nothing feels right, nothing ever goes my way   
I threw my future away   
Now I walk alone out here in the cold...   
Wandering astray  
 Where's my future?   
Gonna need a home  
 You'd expect the same, now wouldn't you, wouldn't you?  _

Your journey back to birth is haunting you, is haunting you   
Your departure from the earth is haunting you, is haunting you

\--------------

 

Waking up in a reality of pain, I instantly knew something was terribly wrong. Nothing would ever be like it was before. Some terrible knowledge was throbbing in the deep darkness of my mind, but my subconscious refused to reveal it. It was protecting me, but from what?

I had no idea who I was, yet this wasn't like amnesia, or what I had read about it. I had a name - Tomoslav, I had a home back in Detroit, I even had a family, friends … but, for the life of me I knew nothing about ME.

Was there a purpose to my existence in this world? Something inside me urged me to pick myself up, some kind of survival instinct. A fucked up kind of instinct: letting my eyes wander over my body, I decided that I definitely should have been dead and preferably buried as well. I was clad in torn rags and my body was covered in horrible still bleeding wounds. I was lying in a pool of my own blood in a back alley of some infamous neighbourhood. A street sign told me I was in Boston. An audition had lured me here. Memory flash: I was a musician. There was no music in my head however. Only silence.

Death might not be far away after all; not finding the strength to get to my feet I had to crawl. I sure wasn't going to get far like this! Meanwhile, a horrible feeling of hunger was nagging my stomach.

Hours seemed to pass by while I dragged myself over the hard concrete, leaving a trail of blood and torn off skin. It might have been days, I couldn't tell, and still I was the only living being in these cold dark streets. My insides were being ripped apart, screaming to be nourished.

Finally I stumbled upon another creature of nature who turned out to be in worse shape than I was. Incredulous, I stared at the body of the youngster sprawled out on the pavement. Pretty boy, narrow T-shirt, tight jeans and eyeliner.

_And a knife stuck in his stomach._

I suppose it was an unfortunate hooker who had met with his destiny. His body wasn't moving; looking closely, his skin seemed to glow though. Obviously the young man was dying right in front of my eyes, but his body still pulsed with life, he wasn't gone yet; his veins throbbed with blood. Warm, inviting and irresistible...

As I threw myself at his throat the door of my conscious swept open and my soul screamed its despair into the night.

 

\------------

 

Somehow, I ended up in Detroit again. My life hadn't changed; paradoxically I just wasn't a part of it any more. Avoiding contact with family and friends, and humans in general in fact, I was hoping to avoid being exposed for the damned creature I had become. Life went on, with me, although I would have preferred it to be without me. I worked, played music, searched the ads for auditions, got a phone call, and was invited for one. Strange…

 

There _was_ a purpose to my presence on this planet. I was a guitarist and the missing link to complete this prog rock band with a surreal sounding name. They told me I was the one they had been looking for their whole lives. I cried. They hugged me.

I could hear my own music again: it was a perfect match to theirs. Having lost my soul I had no right to live anymore, yet I desperately clung to the warmth of their love. They made me laugh; there was a sparkle of humanity left in me!

The driving force of our band was our front man, Jared. It took me weeks to oppress the urge to stare at him open-mouthed whenever I was in the same room with him. Just too perfect to look at … He was talented, driven, inspiring, enthralling … and stung like fucking nettle! Those mesmerizing eyes could paralyze you, while his sharp tongue would administer you the coup de grâce. He could also be very warm and open. Once I had gotten over my initial shyness and realized hard work and honest talent were all that he was expecting from me, we quickly grew very fond of each other.

Jared's rock in the hurricane his life often resembled to was our bassist. Matt was a solid and reliable musician, gifted with an admirable patience and perseverance. In public Jared would fondle him, claiming him as his, make fun of him, going as far as to embarrass him. In private he would look up to him, search his advice, and seek his guidance. Matt was the anchor point in Jared's life. He would have been in mine as well, if I let him. I listened to him, but somehow always thought I knew better.

Cuddling and group hugs were Shannon's specialty though. Our drummer was the most affectionate person I had ever met. He was also emotionally excessive, either quiet or exuberant, left or right, high or low, black or white, crying or laughing, brooding or joking around, locked up in a quiet corner or on top of you, playfully knocking the breath out of your lungs. His bound with his younger brother Jared went beyond human understanding. They were one. Although Shannon was the older one and considered himself his brother's guardian angel, in reality, he had a distinct way of getting himself into all kinds of trouble and often had to be rescued by his more mature sibling.

Shannon and I were best mates in the world. I covered his ass when he pulled one of his stunts; he pampered me whenever my newbie shyness still got the better hand of me. At mornings, I would wipe the whipped cream moustache from his lips when he finished his coffee; he would take my fresh underwear and hide it in the microwave oven, and turn the start button.

He made me _live_, heck, he _was_ my life, and I wanted him; I _craved_ for him.

 

Jared's love life was a complicated paradox I didn't want to put my nose in. He needed witty conversation but wanted them young and blonde. He got them, aplenty. Curiously, he seldom got himself into trouble: they discretely disappeared. If Matt had a love life, he hid it very well. There was only room for Jared in his life anyway.

Shannon's love life was a match to his personality: excessive, contradictory, and messy. He was completely in love or completely out of it. He would give people, men, and women alike, the brooding "fuck off" look or his eyes would scream "rape me". He would tell them they were the centre of his life and subsequently add that his band was the sole purpose of his existence. Of course, he was perpetually on the rebound.

I would console him; tell him that they didn't deserve him, that he didn't need them, all the while wrecking my brain to find a way to persuade him that he needed me. Unfortunately, I had given him completely the wrong image about me. He was convinced I was all but married to my childhood friend Vicky.

Victoria was my guardian angel. She was the sole relic of my former life. If she understood about me she never let on, she just wordlessly supported me. I needed her, although most of all as an excuse when my needs became so urgent I had to slip out of the house or our tour bus and search the streets to find one of those unfortunate nightlife creatures who would give their life for me.

The situation was hopeless so to speak.

 

\------------------

 

Here we go again. Videogame boxes were flying through the tour bus, accompanied by Shannon's angry screams. He locked himself inside the bathroom and flushed all the paper through the toilet. Matt convinced him to come out of there before he emptied our water reservoir. He yelled some more, all the while eating his way through a bag of Butterfingers, king size.

"Gag him and chain him to the dinner table," Jared told me stoically. He was driving the tour bus to our next destination where another concert was awaiting our participation. Outside it was pitch dark.

"I'm not tired of my life yet," I answered Jared with a sense of irony that completely escaped him. There was no longer any need for it anyway. Shannon had finally gone from one extreme to the other and lay quietly curled up on his bunk, close to tears. I stretched out beside him and took him my arms.

"I'm a piece of shit," he sobbed in a twisted macho kind of way.

"No, you're not," I sighed.

"Nobody loves me."

"That's crap."

"And I'll never get laid again. I'm getting old anyway."

I snorted. Jared's angry voice resonated through the bus.

"If that pitiful excuse for a brother of mine doesn't stop feeling sorry for himself, I'll give him a real reason to squall!"

"Fuck your sorry ass!" the answer came from the other end of the tour bus.

"Guys!" Sitting next to Jared, Matt, our wise Nestor, tried to calm things down with the sole power of his soothing voice.

"How I am supposed to concentrate …" Jared growled before easing down.

I sighed in relief and turned my attention to the slightly trembling body in my arms again. Shannon had his eyes shut and lay closely cuddled against me. His distinctly manly smell filled my nose. If I lowered my head, I could easily burry my nose in his neck. If … If only I found the courage.

What if I did? I could feel his skin against my lips. What if I dared? I could taste his skin with my tongue and leave a wet trail from his neck to his cheek, softly nibbling his lips. I could even press my lips against his and - why not - part them with my tongue, pushing inside; searching his tongue with mine. Slide against it in a slippery dance, while my hand could travel downwards over his body to cup the inviting bulge pressing against the flyer of his jeans. He was wearing too much clothes; I would pull them off.

I could feel it, taste it, taste _him_. It seemed real, so real, until something flashing in the corner of my eye diverted my attention. A reflection of something blue. _What?_

I looked up and locked eyes with Jared in the rear window. All blood left my body. I had just been daydreaming again, right? Right!? So what? Fuck, he must have read my thoughts on my face, the shameless lust pouring out of my eyes. Or did I really …?

Either way, I had clearly upset the younger Leto. Upset may even be an understatement. I had trouble making sense out of the pool of dark emotions flooding over Jared's face, but things were wrong, very wrong. My stomach clenched. Wasn't I having trouble enough trying to appear "normal" without having to add more problems, and threatening my place in the band?

Shannon might have fallen asleep. He wasn't moving anymore and breathing calmly. Softly, I disentangled myself from him and crawled to my own bunk, catching a glimpse of Matt's worried look directed towards Jared. Closing the curtain, I buried my face in my pillow.


	2. Beside You in Time 2. Journey Back to Birth

Title: Beside you in time 2. Journey back to birth  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Fandom: 30 Seconds To Mars  
Pairing: Tomo/Shannon, Jared/Shannon  
Rating: NC-17  
Warnings: (apply to the whole series) slash, incest slash, AU, violence, rough language, main character death, angst.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction. And it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: Myr  
Mood creation: 'Bug Eyes' and 'Canyon behind her' by dredg; 'Besides you in time' by Nine Inch Nails, 'Attack' by 30 Seconds To Mars.  
Note: Pythagarus is the name of Jared's guitar.

 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

_Only those who accept will find that acceptance in return  
 When you've been trimmed down like hedges  
 Told just to sit, and wilt, and spit at each other from a distance   
With constant resistant from you  
 I'm gonna need a home  
 You'd expect the same now wouldn't you, wouldn't you?  _

_Your journey back to birth is haunting you, haunting you   
Your departure from the earth is haunting you, haunting you_

 

\-----------------------

 

Pale sunlight invading the tour bus woke me up. We had arrived. _Where?_ After months of touring, all cities had started resembling each other, their names didn't matter anymore. This one wasn't particularly pretty either: morning traffic jams, grey dull buildings, grumpy people in a perpetual hurry.

The building we were parked in front of, must be the concert hall. I vaguely remember Matt telling me there were accommodations for us for the night after the concert. A bed, a real one. Unlimited shower time. It should have been motivating, but it didn't help chase my morose mood. I hated waking up alone. They hadn't even left me breakfast. The thought conveniently cut my appetite.

Considering I was probably missing out on a rehearsal or sound check or whatever and was surely going to get my ass spanked, I left the bus in search of my band mates. A burning pain reminded me of a certain reality, and half blinded, I made a U-turn to search a jacket and my sunglasses.

Loneliness was my long-time soul mate, but today I realized something: this feeling of having been abandoned was worse. _Even Shannon didn't wait for me…_ Probably, I was just extrapolating last night's angst-filled dreams. I was going to find Jared and straighten it out with him, convince him that I'd never ever look at his brother again with anything else than platonic devotion in my eyes. It would be a stretch lying to such a fucking damn good actor; he'd see right through me but he'd realize at the same time I'd commit a murder to abide by that lie.

Everything and everyone was working against me. Wandering through corridors, sound rooms, a rather huge concert hall, press conference rooms, dressing rooms and toilet facilities, I kept bumping into people who all wanted different things from me but were never able to tell me where exactly I could locate my band mates. They kept me running from pillar to post, until I ended up in the wing with the guest rooms. Opening the door to one of them, I saw Matt's toilet bag on one of the two beds present. In the opposite room, various objects were scattered around, amongst them Pythagarus and our PlayStation 2. I felt a pang in my heart. _Shannon is_ my _roomie._

 

Tracing back to the concert hall I finally caught a view of a familiar figure. Shannon was sitting on the floor of the stage next to his drum set, arms resting on his hauled up knees, a cigarette dangling from between two fingers. With a sigh of relief I stepped up to him, even if it was clear he was in a brooding mood. Lifting his eyes only for a fraction of a second to watch me, he then fixed the floor in front of him again.

"Hi." My voice sounded dull, in spite of my attempt to put the right amount of "yoh, nice day, ain't it, funny to meet you here" mixed with "_please_ talk to me" into that one word.

"Hey." The long dark eyelashes didn't move an inch.

_Try the small talk approach._

"What's up? Did I miss out on a rehearsal?"

"No."

_Don't panic. Find Jared. Fucking cure this furuncle. Straighten it out with Shan afterwards._ I bit my lower lip.

"Where's your bro?"

With that, I finally got a reaction out of him. He fixed me, the look in his eyes a startled and disappointed one at the same time.

"Dunno," he said, obviously not caring about it either.

"Huh."

For the first time I truly had no idea how to handle him or figure him out; it was a goddamned twilight experience. Crushing his cigarette on the floor, Shannon jumped off the stage and came to stand in front of me, looking kind of resigned. He chewed on the insides of his cheeks before talking.

"I'm sorry for last night, Tomo."

"What? No! … It's not a problem. I …"

"I know I seriously got on everybody's nerves."

"I don't mind, I-"

"Shut up and listen to me. I'm a turd-"

"Shan-"

"… whining about insignificant things and not seeing what he's got right in front of his eyes."

_What?_ Staring at him, I found myself suddenly being grabbed by my neck and a fistful of the locks perpetually hanging in front of my face. In his usual rough and clumsy way, Shannon crushed his lips against mine. It was over before it began and all I was able to do was stare at him, once more, feeling my bruised lips tingle with the memory of a burning heat. Whatever he was expecting of me it was certainly not this, because he turned around and left. By the time I had snapped out of my stupor and got to the door, the corridors were empty.

 

My quest for Jared resumed, as unfruitful as before, not surprisingly since I was wandering around completely clueless now. People kept bumping into me, as I wasn't walking straight, trying to make sense out of the chaos in my head. How was I to think as they kept distracting me anyway? Sound check people, members of the other bands we were on tour with, press nerds, … they all wanted something from us and since I was the only band member around, it all mounted up to me.

At some point during that day I just decided to go with the flow; do whatever they wanted me to do on a superficial level of consciousness, all the while slowly cleaning up the mess in my head. I was beginning to see things in a new perspective. _Jared, where the fuck are you? Just forget what I was gonna tell you._ I had seen a glimpse of what paradise could be like and I was going to pursue it. _That's right, I want your brother!_ He'd just have to put up with it. If he was stupid enough to blow up the band for this, well, that was just too sad. I had found a soul mate and I was going to keep him with me until eternity caught up with us-

_Eternity is an illusion._

Snap! _Reality check, Tomo._ My euphoria was deluding me. Shannon couldn't possibly be mine, stay with me until the end of times, share my life, my pitiful excuse for a life, my fake existence … _Unless I'd make him truly mine._ Which was unthinkable, unspeakable, a horrible thought, an abomination …

A door opening snapped me out of my thoughts. Matt entered the sound room where I had withdrawn. _Nice to see you're still alive as well. One could have wondered. Now leave me alone._

He had a worried look on his face.

"Tomo, I have to talk to you."

"Not now, Matt. I have to find Jared."

He looked at me as if he was about to freak out. I didn't have time for this shit. Brushing past him, I hurried outside, closing the door behind me. Too much time had been lost already. It was almost getting dark again outside although I had the feeling it was still early in the afternoon. I could try checking out our guest rooms again. I could take Matt's bloody toilet bag and exchange it for Shannon's PS2. I could take Pythagarus and smash her against the wall; maybe her screams would attract Jared.

Alternatively, I could try to calm down before I finally caught up with him, so that we could have a civilized conversation and get all this behind us. For Christ's sake, what had gotten into me? We were band mates and even more than that: we were friends.

 

It was dark inside Jared's room when I pushed the door open after having softly knocked on it to no result. I could barely make out the figure lying on one of the beds. Stepping inside, I recognized Shannon. _Wrong brother._ I was glad to see him anyway. Maybe I could try to re-establish some kind of harmony and understanding between the two of us before confronting Jared. My soul certainly needed a moment of peace right now.

Shannon was lying on his right side with his back to me, dressed only in sweat pants. With the tips of my fingers, I brushed the beautiful tattoo on his left upper arm. He didn't stir, and then I shook him. Softly at first, more insistently after that since he didn't react at all. Something was wrong. I pulled him over on his back. He seemed to breathe normally. His head rolled from left to right a couple of times. Why didn't he wake up? I noticed a nasty looking wound on the inside of his right wrist.

Red light flashing.

_A bite mark?_

What the shit?! _Heart beat rising!_ He was fucking bleeding! _Panic!_ What happened to him?

_When administering a superficial wound in a carefully chosen spot one can temporarily stun a victim to prevent it from …_

"Shannon!" _God! Wake up! Where do I find a first aid kit?_

The next moment I was flying through the room and crushing so hard against the wall I could feel my bones snap. A force of raging fury launched itself at me, punching all air out of my lungs. Claws started to tear my clothes to pieces, scraping my skin, drawing blood.

The beast inside me reacted. I had never used the inexplicable force my muscles had gained since that terrible night. Now that force was taking me over. To no result however, the creature I was confronting was far stronger than I was. Stronger, older, more experienced, merciless. Like me. But better, cruelly better, perfect maybe.

The blows and strikes kept coming. I hadn't known I was capable of hurting so much! Amidst the horror, I still kept worrying about Shannon and trying to catch a glimpse of him. Calling out for him, I suddenly felt teeth sinking into my throat and nearly ripping my vocal cords out. Finally, a particularly vicious punch to my head knocked me unconscious.

 

When I came around, I found myself chained to the radiator with handcuffs. My world was filled with pain, blurring my vision. I looked up to my torturer. It was hard to believe that that beautiful face just moments ago had been contorted into a mask of hate, those crystalline eyes bloodshot. Looking down at me, contemplating, he was calm now, almost looking sad. How could I not have seen this, recognized him for who he was? I was seeing it so clearly now.

With a pitiful smirk, Jared turned away from me. I tried to make a sound but only a nasty gurgle escaped my lips.

"Save it," he said, almost absently minded. He was standing next to the bed now, looking down on his brother. The entire scuffle seemed to have completely passed Shannon by. He hadn't moved an inch. Jared sat down next to him and tenderly struck the hair out of his face. It seemed a peaceful gesture and yet despite my pain induced numbness, I felt anxiety slowly taking me over. I tore on the cuffs; they were very real and very robust. In addition, they were hurting my wrists like hell.

"I hate you."

It took me a few seconds to realize Jared was talking to me. He never lifted his eyes of his brother's face.

"I hate you," he repeated and this time I felt the intense resentment directed at me. "I hate you for forcing me to do this, you worthless piece of shit. I'll make you pay for this, you lousy bastard."

Something inside me recognized the truth in his words. I was a failure, abandoned by my creator, not even worth finishing off, a nothing compared to him who seemed so beautiful, so perfect. A sob shook my body, making Jared smirk in contempt. He closed his eyes and I saw tears sliding down his cheeks. I dropped my head, wanting to die. Truly die.

When I opened my eyes again, Jared had stretched out on the bed, laying half on top of his brother. He had buried his head in Shannon's neck, one hand stroking his chest. Through the cloud of despair in my head, I was starting to feel eerie about the situation again. Jared's hands cupped his brother's face, gently pushing it back, exposing Shannon's throat. His lips brushed against it. Then his tongue came out. Licking.

My blood froze. _Cold._ I tried to stand up and immediately fell down again, bruising my wrists even more. Pain. Jared ignored me, crawling on top of his brother, moving up a bit to capture Shannon's lips, his thumb stroking his brother's throat, exactly at the spot where the blood flowed through his carotid artery. Ignoring the pain, I uselessly tried to free my hands. Jared's hand moved down to pull at his brother's pants. Breaking the kiss, he heaved himself up to be able to remove them. Gently pulling his brother's legs apart he moved in between them.

I had forgotten about the cuffs, didn't feel the pain anymore. I was frantically writhing like a trapped animal. _Shannon!!?_

_Taking the victim's mind off the pain, focusing it on a pleasurable experience, maybe considered merciful …_

When his brother entered him, Shannon let out a surprised groan. His body tensed for a second before relaxing, giving in to the movement. I gurgled, unable to make more noise. Jared's lips moved from his brother's mouth to his throat, kissing it. Then his teeth sank in.

The horrible scream resounding through my head was produced only by my mind. All reason had left me. I had found a sparkle of hope, a soul I wanted to bond with, and I was losing it again to … to that! Blood oozed from my wrists, I could have devoured them, anything to get loose! _Shannon!! SHANNON!!!_

Did he hear my wordless scream? His eyelids started to flutter and slowly opened. His head being turned in my direction, he tried to focus on me. I saw his pupils dilate and suddenly realized what a horrible sight I must be to him, covered in blood, raging like a mad man, indescribable sounds escaping my mutilated throat. Panic spread over his face, right before another horrible realization set in.

The deafening screams came from the depths of his soul and would have woken up the dead. My heart broke. Rather than making him go through this, I should have remained silent. He was struggling for his life, writhing underneath Jared with a force that nearly threw his brother off. Jared took his wrists, holding them together above his head with one hand, closing the other hand over Shannon's mouth, never interrupting the horrible action on his brother's throat. _Please God, I want to die, I can't watch this._

 

_A cracking sound!_ Pythagarus crushed against Jared's head, sending him off the bed and out of conscious. Incredulously, I looked up to Matt, who threw the remains of the guitar away. Shannon crawled off the bed, looking at the motionless corps of his brother. He was trembling uncontrollably, the look in his eyes close to insanity. Seeing Matt make a gesture in his direction, he turned around and fled out of the room, still naked. Matt picked up his clothes and headed for the door as well. The rattling sound of my handcuffs against the radiator made him look around.

Still unable to speak, I could only beg him with my eyes. My plea remained unanswered. He shook his head, smiled sadly, and made for the door, after stealing a last glance at Jared.

 

I was done for. When Jared would wake up, he was going to kill me.

_The unspeakable act against our own kind …_

There wasn't anything else he could do, consumed as he was by his hatred towards me. And there was no escape, nothing I could do, no reasonable way to get out of these handcuffs.

I stared at them for a long time, holding my hands up to find some relief from the throbbing pain in my still bleeding wrists. I knew I wanted to get out of that room.

Jared stirred, but the movement hardly shook my concentrating. I was running out of time though. I _had_ to act. With my right hand, I folded my left thumb against the palm of my hand and pushed. The cracking sound startled me more than the flash of pain. I didn't have time to contemplate that because Jared was waking up. Launching myself at him, I crushed him against the wall, much like he had done to me earlier on. His head hit the wall with a sickening sound. I hadn't killed him though. I should.

I stared down at him.

_Forbidden. Unforgivable._

He wouldn't hesitate killing me.

_Shannon's brother …_

Turning around I left that godforsaken room.

 

\--------------------

 

It was maddening; the labyrinth experience continued. Rooms, halls, corridors, completely empty this time. Just as well: any human soul spotting me in this condition would have lost his mind. After having turned around for what seemed like hours, I finally found myself in the concert hall again. Exhaustion was setting in. The sight of Shannon's drum set only made me feel more desperate.

Spotting a movement in the corner of my eyes I whirled around. Shannon pushed the huge hall door close and came to lean against the wall beside it. He was wearing his clothes and the wound in his neck was dressed, so Matt must have caught up with him. Relief washed over me and I wanted to step up to him. Something in his eyes stopped me though. They had never looked this dark, his irises seemed completely black. I couldn't figure out the look on his face. It was then that I spotted the crossbow he was holding.

_The instrument of judgment. The means to end it all._

It was made out of silver and terrifyingly beautiful. A small silver quarrel was resting on its stock. I recognized the weapon, any one of our kind would. The ancient image was burned in our memories. The only one who could have given it to Shannon was Jared's creator.

Shannon calmly watched the emotions spread over my face. When I met his eyes again, the despair in them made my heart clench.

"I _had_ to make a choice …" he mumbled. I was torn between the desire to run to him and take him in my arms, and the horrible instinctive fear flowing through my veins. The lather won and I turned around to flee.

Matt was leaning against the opposite door of the hall, a resolved look on his face. I stopped dead in my tracks. In my mind understanding settled in. I turned around again to meet the face I wanted to remember in eternity. I was ready to die.


	3. Beside You in Time 3. Where’s My Future?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tip of the veil lifted. Matt's POV alternated with Tomo's.

Title: Beside you in time. 3. Where's my future?  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Fandom: 30 Seconds To Mars  
Pairing: Tomo/Shannon  
Rating: NC-17  
Warnings: (apply to the whole series) slash, incest slash, AU, violence, rough language, main character death, angst.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction, and it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: Myr  
Mood creation: 'Beside you in time' and 'A Warm Place' by Nine Inch Nails.

 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

_Oh we will never die  
Oh besides you in time_

\-----------------------------

 

Absorbed in his memories, Matt stared at the silver crossbow, his long-time companion. The scene in front of him struck a painful cord, again and again he seemed to find himself in this familiar situation, when everything suddenly went wrong, when years of patient construction on his part ended in failure and everything imploded. All he had ever wanted to do was create a family around him; it was an innate instinct he couldn't fight.

Remembering the day he first set eyes on the two handsome brothers, felt as if it was yesterday. They had just ended up in LA, back bags heavy but pockets empty, their talent, and creativity their only riches. The ancient calling in his heart had been irresistible and, determined to do things right this time, first he had cautiously approached the younger of the two. When he had seen the piercing blues eyes confidently looking up in his, into the new life that he had just offered the young man, he had felt a heart-warming triumph for the first time in his life.

Patiently, he had waited for the timing to be right though, staying out of the brothers' lives for years, letting them search their own way and developing their talents. To his surprise, Jared had made the first step towards making a unity out of the three of them, by inviting Matt into his little rock group.

It soon became more than he had ever dreamed a family could be, but Jared insisted they would never be complete without a fourth band member. So he went out to find that missing link, accumulating several unfortunate experiences. Close to abandoning, one day he came to realize that one of his "failed experiments" was still walking around. At first, he cursed himself for not even having been able to finish the young man off properly. Then curiosity had taken over.

Jared and Shannon were instantly ecstatic about their new "family member" so he tried to ignore his bad premonitions. The dark-haired young man with the foreign looks remained a mysterious contradiction to him though. Tomo had inherited all the necessary talent and the power, but didn't know how to put them to use. He didn't recognize his creator, and something deep inside his soul was resisting every attempt on Matt's part to give him guidance. Matt couldn't help but admire Tomo's survival capacities though, as well as his strong sense of loyalty and friendship. He felt immensely sorry for what had to come.

 

_I wished there was a way I could make it easier for Shannon. Standing so close that I could almost touch him, I waited for him to raise the crossbow. I wanted to say something, comfort him, tell him I understood if he wanted to be with Jared._

 

Happiness is something one has to work for. Matt considered that maybe he had been fooling himself into thinking he had assimilated that lesson, while willingly neglecting several signs of forthcoming trouble. For years he resisted Jared's pleas that his brother would be able to share that special dimension of their existence. This one thing he was unable to give Jared, even going as far as to forbid him to take matters into his own hand. There was a look of innocence and carefreeness in those hazel eyes that he was too afraid to see killed. Maybe it was a vague memory of the joy in life he once felt himself, before the curtain fell.

In the end, maybe it had been his most important mistake. Jared's fear of losing his brother drove him near to madness. Even if he could understand Jared's actions, forgiving him would be more difficult. First peace should be restored inside "the family" and all source of tension was to be removed. Then he would make Jared see reason. Sighing, he admitted to himself that he would have to reconsider his decision regarding Shannon.

 

_A sharp sound startled me. The silver crossbow had fallen to the floor. Confused I looked at Shannon, he was raising his hand as if he wanted to touch the still aching wound at my throat, preventing me from speaking._

_"I'm so sorry … he won't hurt you anymore," he murmured, so quietly I had trouble making out his words. I was pretty damn sure I had misunderstood. I had to have. He was looking so sad I couldn't resist any longer though; I took his hand in mine._

 

The crystalline clear sound echoed through Matt's head, provoking a sharp pain. Seeing the crossbow tumbling over the floor, he instinctively moved towards it to pick it up. Unable to take his eyes off the two young men who were completely absorbed into each other, he tried to deny the obvious. With each step, realization set in deeper and his feet seemed to become heavier though. This was not the loss he had foreseen. This was worse, maybe the worst thing that had ever happened to him. The pain became almost unbearable when he saw Tomo looking around to him with panic in his eyes and, in spite of the pitiful state he was in himself, moving in front of Shannon as if to protect him.

 

_I was so wrapped up in the feeling of that warm hand resting in mine that I had completely forgotten we weren't alone in there. When I saw Matt holding that instrument from hell, I snapped out of my little bubble fast enough. Still not understanding shit about his role in all this, somehow I felt as if he wasn't on "my" side. I just wanted to be as far away from him as possible and I would have spilled my last drop of blood to prevent him from going nearer to Shannon._

 

Slowly, Matt turned around and started walking towards the door. Once outside, his heart started fluttering in his chest. Knowing deep inside that it was too late, he couldn't help himself from frantically running through the building, searching. He needed to see to believe.

 

Somewhere in one of the cellars underneath the huge building, he met up with his destiny. The place served as a storage room, packed with all kinds of stage equipment. It was appropriately cold in there. Sinking down on the floor, crossing his legs, Matt let his look wander over the body of the beautiful man sprawled out in front of him, caressing it solely with his eyes. Words were not enough to describe the love he felt at that moment, nor the regrets that were tormenting his mind.

There was no one to blame but himself for the catastrophic events of the past 24 hours, for the beautiful corps at his feet mutilated by a silver arrow stung in its forehead, for the broken look in Shannon's eyes, for Tomo's still more devastated mind. In his heart, he still felt that he gave the crossbow into the right pair of hands, even if this was not the outcome he had expected. What kind of future was left now for those two wounded souls though? What kind of future was left for him?

 

_Matt's departure left me feeling relieved and worried at the same time. I wanted to leave this doomed place with Shannon as fast as possible. At the same time, I realized that fleeing like a beaten dog in the night wasn't a smart thing to do. I had to know what Matt's intentions were. Moreover, I needed to know about Jared._

_I turned around to Shannon, hesitatingly. How could I ask of him to talk to me about what had happened between him and his brother? Hell, I didn't even have a voice to pop the question to him, let alone the guts._

_Shannon still had his hand in mine. While I was trying to figure out what to do, I saw him searching my face. Whatever he must have read there, suddenly made him panic. With a hint of madness in his eyes, he started dragging me toward the exit of the concert hall. Despair gave him unexpected strength and we were halfway through the backstage before I managed to stop him. He was struggling in my arms while I tried to think of a way to persuade him we couldn't leave like this._

_Suddenly, he stopped resisting me and sank down on the bare floor, a look of total exhaustion on his face. Something inside me broke and I slumped down as well, almost on top of him. Feeling his body shake uncontrollably, I wrapped my arms around him. Maybe tears would have brought him some relief, but he seemed unable to let himself go. There was nothing more I could do than offer him the comfort of my embrace, but it was damn hard resisting the urge to clutch to him in my own despair. I was barely able to look after myself. How was I to take care of him?_

 

Returning to the cellar after having gathered the necessary in his room, Matt started the ceremonial preparation. From the ancient phial, that had seen centuries pass by, he drew a large circle of oil around the body. There was so little room inside the cellar that the leaking oil soon spilled on the stage props packed against the walls. While a spicy scent filled the air, Matt placed several candles on the circle of oil, and lit them. He looked down into the sapphire eyes one last time before closing them and sat down next to the body, patiently watching the candles burn and the flames nearing the oil, waiting.

 

_The coldness of the floor was invading my body, making the throbbing pain in my broken hand almost unbearable. There seemed to be no goddamned living soul left in the entire building besides us. The silence was eerie. I wondered how much time we had left like this, in this frozen moment of deceiving peace. We couldn't stay there; we had to do something …_

_Then the asphyxiating smell of smoke entered my nose._


	4. Beside You in Time 4. Walking the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two survivors are on the road, heading towards their destiny. Introducing Colin. Again Tomo's POV.

Title: Beside you in time 4. Walking the day  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Fandom: 30 Seconds To Mars  
Pairing: Tomo/Shannon  
Rating: NC-17  
Warnings: (apply to the whole series) slash, incest slash, AU, violence, rough language, main character death, angst.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction, and it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: (Myr)  
Mood creation: 'A warm place', 'Beside you in time' and 'The way out is through' by Nine Inch Nails.

 

*****************************************

 

I was dreaming we were on our tour bus, crossing the country, devouring miles like a never satisfied ogre. The sensation was so familiar: lying in the darkness on a mattress a little too hard, being rocked by the softly shaking movement and the humming of a heavy diesel motor. Reality came back to me quickly though: this wasn't our tour bus but a camper belonging to an elderly couple who had been friendly enough to give us a ride to LA. Someone should protect nice people like these. Picking up dirty, scruffy looking young hitchhikers with no names, no money, and no past nor future, in the middle of the night was goddamn insanity on their part.

In broad daylight, someone probably would have reported us to the police. My wounds were healing remarkably fast, but I was still covered in cuts and bruises, too many to hide. Shannon had lent me a scarf of his to cover the dressing of the still horrible looking wound at my throat. My voice was coming back though. I was still unable to move my left thumb, but bones, tissue and everything else seemed to be growing back by simply looking at it. _Interesting._ All in all, I bore more or less resemblance to a human being, from afar that is.

The bandage covering Shannon's wound in his neck, was hidden by his clothes. Still very tired from the blood loss, nothing could hide the tortured look lingering in his eyes. Earlier that night, I had reluctantly been forced to leave him alone for a while. I had no choice; it was a matter of "feed or die", and dying wasn't an option anymore. So, I left him in a small bar in a quiet looking street downtown, with a bowl of hot chocolate on the table in front of him.

Usually, I tried to find the most infamous neighborhood of a city, hoping to fall on an unfortunate creature with one foot already in the grave. A victim of a gang conflict left to die, for example. Killing wasn't my forte … I didn't have time to be picky that night though, so I just had it over with quickly.

When I came back, the bar was closed. A hollow feeling invaded my stomach and slowly took over my entire body. Trying to imagine where he could have gone off to, I looked up and down the street that was bathed in a cold blue light. At the far end, there was a little long-term car park.

I found Shannon huddled under a bus resembling our tour bus, lying on the cold concrete, freezing his ass off, eyes tightly shut. I almost couldn't bring myself to approach him, afraid as I was to see those eyes fly open and find contempt in them, or worse. He didn't jump when I touched him though, and the look in his eyes was indecipherable no matter how long I scrutinized his face. In the end, I just took his hand and drew him from under the bus. He followed me without hesitating.

Once outside the city, we started hitchhiking and that's how we ended up in this huge camper of these nice old folks who would have an instant heart attack if they new about the smoldering remains of a burnt out concert hall we had left behind us. Dressing a bed for us in the back of the camper by pulling down the diner table, they kindly put a mattress on top of it. Exhausted as we were, we instantly crushed down on it. Good reason told me that heading towards LA was definitely a stupid thing to do. Shannon wanted to collect some things at Jared's place though, and I couldn't refuse him that.

A stirring beside me snapped me out of my musings. Shannon was crawling towards me. I thought he had been sleeping. When he snuggled down under the blanket with me, I put my arms around him. I felt closer to him than ever before and at the same time I didn't understand him anymore. Guessing his thoughts was impossible. Okay, so that's the normal confusing sensation when you fall in love, but it was damned inconvenient right now.

Sighing, I tried to shake off my morose thoughts and just enjoy this moment of peace. Shannon's lips brushed the skin of my neck above the scarf, as if to comfort me, so I kissed the top of his head in return. Slowly, he started to remove the scarf and I felt his lips again, a little more insisting this time. Certain that he couldn't want more than just a comforting hug, I closed my arms more tightly around him. When I felt his fingers search my face and brush my lips, I finally opened my eyes, a bit startled. I only caught a glimpse of those hazel pools before his lips closed on mine and my eyes shut close in reaction.

A bit panicky, I drew the blanket over our two heads. The camper was dark in the back, and the blanket was large enough to make us both drown in its folds. If we didn't move too much, maybe we wouldn't attract attention. Somehow, things got out of control though, very quickly. My mind was having trouble keeping up with my body's impatience. I was thinking about nibbling Shannon's lips, and maybe sliding a hand under his shirt, while I felt him tangling his fingers in my hair and wriggling closer to me, his tongue frantically searching in my mouth. My body just ignited. His lips, his tongue, … his taste was just too good and I had wanted him for too long. Considering that at this rate we were going to get ourselves into trouble, I moved on top of him to stop his writhing movements. Big mistake. _Electroshock._ A meeting of two energy sources, growing in force and consistency. _Painfully hard!_

I made a feeble attempt at tearing away from his lips and trying to speak, but he just grabbed my hair and drew me back. Two layers of clothes between us hardly mattered. His hands slipped under my shirt, caressing my back, teasing my nipples, squeezing my shoulders, sliding down to my ass. I realized he was seducing me. Hopelessly in love as I was with him, mind, body and soul, I couldn't resist him, even if the thought of hearing a sudden voice shout out in angry surprise almost paralyzed me.

After a lot of fumbling and several panic attacks on my part, our heated skins met, and that was the end of my pretences. A bloody car accident wouldn't prevent me from having Shannon. Pulling up his legs, I entered him gently. A little voice in the back of my head was mumbling something about protection. However, it just seemed an irrational thought at that moment. The sensation was overwhelming and wiping out every coherent thought I might have had. I was afraid I was going to literary burst right there and then. My lack of self-control suddenly made me feel uncertain. Knowing preciously little about the art of making love to men, I was afraid to hurt him, or disappoint him, bore him, or whatever. _God, just move, you stupid._

In the end, it seemed to come naturally. I just followed the movement Shannon made with his tongue inside my mouth. Somehow he knew how to touch my body in all the right places. Thrusting into him I was becoming more and more excited, moving faster and harder. The only way this could possibly end was by me exploding in a thousand bomb shelves and wiping both of us from this planet. _Mercy! I can't take it anymore …_

Releasing his lips, I murmured something desperately incoherent, trying to find a way to recollect myself before I was inevitable going to fall off the edge. He whispered soothingly in my ear and his embrace turned into a comforting one. Groaning, I buried my face against his shoulder. My nose was rubbing against his wound dressing in a slightly distracting way, but not enough to take my mind off the intense sensation of being so deep inside him. Our frantic movements calmed down, but it was clear he wasn't going to grant me much respite. While he slowly began to thrust up to me again, I felt my most sensible part being massaged by suffocating hot muscles. Kissing the skin just above his wound dressing, the presence of which was beginning to annoy me, I slowly began making sense out of his panting.

"… take me, Tomo …"

_Huh?_ There was this kind of fog-like sensation in my ears, preventing me from hearing clearly. He rubbed his cheek against my temple, holding my face in place with both his hands and I heard him again.

"… please, Tomo, please, just take me …"

Simultaneously, it dawned on me, along with a familiar smell entering my nose. _No … yes …stop this!_ Excitement, fear, wanting, panic, longing, despair, different kinds of needs, … it was all mixing in my head. _No, Goddamnit! You can't ask this of me!_

It was as if I could feel his heart flutter in his throat while he began to tear on his wound dressing. His voice broke.

"Tomo-"

"Stop it, no, stop it, stop it, stop it. I won't!" I hissed.

_But it was so tempting!!_

Piercingly and cruelly, the alluringly smell invaded my nose and almost blew my reason away. Desperately, I grabbed both his fists and pinned them above his head, tearing my face away from his neck and breathing in fresh air. He went limp underneath me, turning his face away to hide his disappointment.

_Please, never think of that anymore._

Feeling I had gathered myself enough, I released his wrists and grabbed his hands, entangling our fingers. Kissing his closed eyelids, I started moving inside him again. I took him slowly and gently, watching every emotion on his face. He came with a cry, muffled against my arm, his eyes still closed and his face contorted in pleasure. I came from the mere sight of it.

Once the cloud of desire gone, my too cerebral mind caught up on me again. I felt as if I had let Shannon down in every possible way. As my head rested on his chest, I listened to his heartbeat calming down, drawing the blanket closely around us. I desperately needed to explain things to him, but was hoping he would make the first step. Since it seemed I was waiting in vain, I took my courage in both hands.

"Shan-"

"No, it's okay."

_Don't shut me out now._

"Please, listen to me."

I paused to see if he would interrupt me again, but he remained silent, staring up at the ceiling.

"I can't do that. I can't do to you what I wish with all my heart had never been done to me."

He seemed to contemplate that during the silence that followed, as I was struggling to find words and a way to make my feelings clear to him.

"How can we stay together like this?" His voice was so low I could barely hear him. "Someday you'll have to leave me behind."

_Helpless silence. Say something …_

"No, I won't. We'll find a way. Nothing is going to separate us."

_Tomo in his most lucid moments, a model of reason!_ I was waiting for him to scatter my illusions to pieces, but his mind took a different turn.

"What if I run into another … someone like you?"

_What other what …? Fuck, no._ The thought had never entered my mind, but he was right. At the risk of being discovered, we had hung around watching the concert hall burn down, even long after the fire brigades had arrived. No one had left the building alive. I supposed I could call myself an orphan now. Who said I was the last one of my kind left though?

I had tried to make Shannon tell me what happened between him and Matt after they left Jared's room, hoping I might learn something more about myself. Pressing juice out of a stone would have been easier. All I had been able to deduct was that Matt was somehow at the origin of it all. I didn't exactly want to preoccupy myself with my ambiguous thoughts towards him right now; it didn't seem of any use anymore either. I couldn't bring myself to put more pressure on Shannon, force back on him the memory of when he confronted his brother with that crossbow in his hands, fearing I would drive him to insanity.

 

Shannon had turned his face towards me, boring his eyes into mine. What could I tell him? I swallowed the lump in my throat away.

"I'll be there. I won't leave you alone …"

I was drowning in those dark pools, scrutinizing my face.

"Okay …" he whispered.

The breath I didn't know I was holding, escaped my lips and I laid my head back on his chest.

 

Every minute was taking us further away from that cursed place, and we couldn't be far enough. Traveling like this was the least risky way I could think of right now. Hopefully, it would just take us a day or two to get to LA.

Suddenly, I realized the old lady was standing at the foot end of our bed. Jesus! We were still laying naked under that blanket in our own sticky mess. I was too afraid to look up.

"Are you young folks alright back there?" her crackling voice came.

"Yes, ma'am, we're … a … ok."

God knows how Shannon managed to come up with such a shining smile, but I could just feel the old lady melt into a puddle of glee.

"You're sweet boys, both of you. I just knew it, really good boys. Aren't they, Arnie?" she cooed and stumbled back towards the front of the camper. _Too nice to be real, too good to be true._ I just hoped they would never meet someone … like me.

 

*******

 

_Fear not the sun, for you are a day walker …_

 

The pale morning sky was slowly becoming brighter, when we reached Jared's house. I felt like the sun was sneaking up on me, ready to tear layer upon layer of my skin away. Although I always made sure to wear enough clothes to be protected, I never felt secure in broad daylight. The cool darkness of the house with the closed window blinds was inviting, and I quickly slipped inside. Mail was piling up behind the front door. Obviously, it had been a while since someone had come by to check the place out. His plants wouldn't live to tell, that was clear.

I turned around to see what was keeping Shannon; he should get inside before someone spotted us. Sitting on the front porch, he was having a little nicotine pause, the first beams of the morning sun lighting up his face. I loved how his skin tanned during summer, making his eyes look even darker. He could easily be mistaken for a Mexican border refugee.

Shannon curled his lips in a little reassuring smile, so I left him there and went upstairs. Leaning into the doorway, I let my eyes sweep through his room. I wondered what stuff he was keeping here instead of at his place and why he wanted to take it with him. Little dust particles were playing in the small beams of sunlight peeping through the window blinds. I wished we had time to lie down on his bed, listen to his NIN albums, cuddle, make out … like a normal couple.

We would, later, elsewhere. Let's get this over with and leave. There was a movement behind me. It was as if I felt it with my skin. Expecting Shannon to have followed me, I turned around. Suddenly, as if in a flash, I saw him still sitting outside. The silence inside the house was deafening. _Why does it weigh so heavily?_

Then, abruptly, my heart skipped a beat. _There is someone else in this house! Shan!_ Without thinking, I stormed out of his room and almost ruined it for both of us. Stopping dead in my tracks on the landing, I hoped it wasn't too late.

Downstairs, having just entered the house, Shannon was eyeing the dark figure standing in the doorway of the living, not quite believing what he saw. Then his face broke into a genuine happy smile and he pounced on the taller man.

"Colin!"

"Shan! Hehey!"

The Irishman crushed Shannon in a bear-hug, lifting him off the floor.

"Put me down, fuckhead!"

"Still better at foul-mouthing than meself, huh?"

Squirming, Shannon freed an arm and punched a good blow to Colin's head. He promptly got one in return, followed by another hug.

"Mario dude! Whadaya doing here?"

_Fuck! Think Shannon! Quickly!_

"Ehm, what I am doing here? Stuff … ehm, I came to get some things … songs … we're working on, in between concerts, you know. Jared forgot his notes …"

"What? Still sending you on his errands, is he?"

"Yeah, well, we really need them, so …"

"Tell him to fuck off. Why didn't he ask me when he called me to come water his plants?"

_Too late for the plants._

"Dunno …"

_Shit._

"Don't let him boss you around like that." Colin drew both his hands through his shoulder length hair.

"Look who's talking! _Water his plants?_" Shannon sneered.

"Yeah, we're both suckers, I guess," Colin grinned.

Suddenly, they both jumped up at a rattling sound coming from the living room.

"Cookie! Wad'hav'you'dun?"

"Daddee! Hurt!"

While both men hurried into the living room, I started breathing a little more freely. Apparently, Colin hadn't heard me coming in. Since I still looked like Hell's Angels beat me up, it was better if he thought Shannon was here alone. I had to think of a way to get us away from here quickly without Colin getting suspicious though.

Sneaking back down the stairway, I hurried into the kitchen. From behind the kitchen door, I could observe what went on in the living room. Colin's two year-old was excitedly writhing in Shannon's arms. Jared's South-African tribal mask seemed to have suffered more damage from Jimmy's exploring activity than the little rag doll himself.

As I was hoping, Shannon soon headed for the kitchen to get drinks. Fearing I might startle him into yelling, I nervously grabbed him as soon as he passed the doorway, putting my hand over his mouth while pushing him against the wall. I should have been a little gentler; he almost had a heart attack.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"Yeah …" he panted, but he looked at me like a lost puppy. I felt guilty.

"Listen," I said while putting my hand to his cheek, "You stay here with Colin and Jimmy. I'll go to the railway station to buy us tickets. When I get back, you'll tell him you have to go or you'll miss our next concert. Okay?"

"'Kay."

He looked a little relieved. Drawing my hand away, I almost turned to leave, but couldn't quite do it. For some reason, I had to gather courage to put a kiss on his lips. Grabbing an old cell phone of Jared's lingering on the counter, I quickly sneaked out of the kitchen's back door.


	6. Beside You in Time 6. The Great Below

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Resurrection of one of the "dead". But is there a future? POV of different characters.

Title: Beside you in time 6. The great below  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Pairing: Tomo /Shannon and Matt/Jared implied  
Rating: NC-17  
Warnings: (apply to the whole series) slash, incest slash, AU, violence, rough language, main character death, angst.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction, and it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: Myr  
Mood creation: 'Hurt', 'The Frail', 'Beside You In Time' and 'The Great Below' by Nine Inch Nails.

 

*******************

 

_Now that I've decided not to stay  
 I can feel me start to fade away   
Everything is back where it belongs   
I will be beside you before long_

 

*****

 

LA, Tomo

 

How much time had past by? Impossible to say. Years? Weeks? Just one day? When I finally lifted my face, it was dark. I felt cold, and hard, as if I was made of stone, a brick façade, empty inside. _Did I ever feel anything? I don't remember..._

 

They say bodies are impossibly heavy, as if a human inexplicably gains weight as soon as he dies. As I carried him all the way to Saint Brigit Cemetery, Shannon weighed nothing in my arms though. So much blood had left his body that his skin had turned white as porcelain. He looked as if he would shatter into pieces if I dropped him.

_You'll know where to find the center of the sacred place, its very heartbeat. It is the most ancient location, where men have buried the first dead of their community._

"Brigit" is said to be a haunted place. Its origins were lost in time. Few people in LA knew about that cemetery. Jared had once pestered me with it, who knows why. Carrying Shannon's body through the alleys bordered with huge gravestones, tombs and sculptures, I didn't look left or right. Yet, I felt them, their eyes burning in my back. _The Others._ My presence displeased them, my intentions even more. Sacrilege.

_Their history is intertwined with ours. They create a safe haven for their dead. We claim their first tomb as ours. In there, generation after generation we lay our own to rest._

I stopped in front of a little mausoleum, surrounded by a fence; it was hard to say what religious conviction it was dedicated to. Its architecture combined various styles, decorated with all kinds of religious symbols and votive objects. There wasn't much room inside; in fact there was nothing more than a hole in the ground and a stairway leading into the darkness.

_Dust to dust …_

The stairs led to a crypt, in the middle of which was a tomb. Candles were burning in various niches, their flames casting strange shadows on the walls. An awkward smell perfumed the air, like oil or something, making everything seem strangely familiar. Carefully, I laid Shannon's body down. Behind me, shrieks resounded through the night. _They_ were getting very angry. I would take care of them once I got back out. If they had the guts to show their faces, that is. Using the anger I suddenly felt inside me, I violently pushed against the stone plate covering the tomb. Moving surprisingly easily, it nearly fell to the ground. A dust cloud escaped from inside the tomb, lingering above it for a while before suddenly dissipating. I heard a loud sigh, as if the burial monument was taking a deep breath of fresh air. Nearing the stone coffin, I saw it was empty. I hadn't expected anything else.

Picking up Shannon's body, I laid it inside the tomb. Staring at his face, I felt something stir inside me. The anger I had felt just before had disappeared, and something else was trying to break through. I pushed it away. _Not now. Not yet._ Running a finger over Shannon's face, I traced his forehead, nose, lips, and chin. This was the last time I could touch him. Every particle of my body would remember his forever though. Finally, I pushed the tombstone back in place.

When I got out of the mausoleum, the night was silent. I closed the gate of the fence. Concentrating, I tried to remember how I could put my mark on it. _This place is his now, ours._ The voice inside my head had gone silent though. All I could think of was using Shannon's scarf. Entangling it around the gate's lock, I suddenly felt my hand involuntarily gripping at the soft fabric. _Damn! Get a hold of yourself!_ Forcing myself to let the scarf slip through my fingers, I stepped back and took a deep breath. Everything seemed appropriate. I was done here.

Turning around, I listened to the night. _They_ were gone. Or maybe I had yet again lost the ability of feeling their presence. They were insignificant anyway. There was only one of us I wanted to confront with. If what I had learned from the voices inside my head was worth anything, I knew where to start looking.

 

***

 

Boston, Libby

 

Each year, the average temperature in Boston seemed to lose a degree or so. Global warm-up was just a conspiracy theory, Liberty mused while hurrying through the streets of the coastal city. _Libby, there must be something seriously wrong with you._ She sighed, trying to remember why she went through all the trouble. _Because he calls you his guardian angel, and you love his smile when he says that._

Hopping inside the tall, familiar building, she wondered why Matt insisted on keeping that apartment. Although he claimed to have family here, she had never met them, and Matt had spent very little time there since he joined that Californian based band. Still, he liked her to come there now and then, _to keep the place alive_, whatever he meant by that.

Opening the door of the apartment, she blindly searched for the light switch. When she flipped it, nothing happened though. _Don't tell me they cut the electricity!_ Swearing under her breath, she strained her eyes to find her way through the dark living room, towards the kitchen, where she knew the main power switch was located. Hearing a noise behind her, she suddenly felt goose bumps on her back and turned around. _Nothing, no one, just silence._ Then two strong arms grabbed her from behind. Her scream was muffled by a coarse hand over her mouth.

Bravely, she tried to control her panic. The man holding her seemed to understand she was willing to cooperate and removed his hand from her mouth.

"When is the last time you saw him, Libby?" The low voice was barely audible. Through the cold despair rising inside her, she felt as if she should know this man, but she couldn't quite place his voice. She had been told that this could happen, but now she realized she wasn't ready.

He never gave her the occasion to try to gain time. Disbelief stunned her when she felt what seemed like a claw hooking itself in her right eye and ripping it out. When reality hit her, her shrieks were smothered once again by a big hand against her mouth.

She ended up telling him everything he wanted to know, _everything_. In return, her aggressor showed her some mercy. Her last thought was one of gratefulness: at least, she wouldn't have to face Matt, burdened with the shame of her betrayal.

 

***

Boston, Matt

 

The most appeasing hour of the day, was right after sunset. The moment they could all let go of their barely acknowledged but ever present anxiety, the moment they knew the world was becoming theirs again. Even after all that time, every night again and again Matt felt it. Looking absentmindedly at the single red rose in his hand, his pace slowed down. There was no need to hurry. He had all night.

The graveyard was bathed in an orangey glow. Despite it being well after visiting hours, the gates were open. No person in his right mind would dare close this cemetery anyway, lest he should attract the wrath of its nightly visitors. The Others seemed to be present in large numbers that night, Matt noticed. Sensing an atmosphere of stress around him, he wondered what had gotten them so worked up. Displeased, he sent a sharp growl into the night. The answer was an abrupt silence.

Satisfied, Matt resumed his path. He hadn't expected them to question his authority anyway. One of them was following him though. Hearing a noise, he turned his head, only to sense the disturbing presence all of a sudden in front of him. Abruptly, he turned his head back to see the reckless intruder standing in the alley some 15 feet away from him.

It took him a moment to recognize the other. Every feature of the man in front of him was familiar, and yet he seemed different from how Matt remembered him. Something about his eyes had changed, the resolved look in them being new to him. The man had been feeding recently, very recently. His skin was glowing and his whole attitude radiated strength.

Matt's mind drifted off for a moment. Sometimes Jared had had that same breathtaking aura around him. Matt had felt so proud of him at those moments, so filled with love.

"Why have you come to look for me, Tomo?" Matt asked, forcing his mind to focus again on the man in front of him. He didn't understand the purpose of the other's presence there. He would have expected Tomo to be concentrating on building a new life with his companion, shying away from the remnants of their old one. "Of all those places you could have gone to, all the paths you could have chosen, why come here?"

"This is the only path left for me now," the answer came, the cold and barely audible voice carried in Matt's direction by the wind.

Suddenly, Matt realized why he had had this feeling of something lacking since he first set eyes on Tomo again. How could he have missed it? His last memory was of the two of them together, lost in each other, discovering their growing bound.

"Tomo, where is Shannon?" he asked, softly.

A black shadow passed over the face in front of him, the pupils of those velvet brown eyes dilating for only a few seconds, enough to confirm Matt's fear.

"He's dead."

Tomo had regained complete control over his emotions again, his voice holding the same silent intensity as before. Matt was surprised how much the news was affecting him, despite the fact that he had held little hope for them anyway. All that suffering for nothing.

"How did he die?"

"You mean you don't know?"

For the first time, there was a faint hint of uncertainty in the other's voice. Matt shook his head. Tomo seemed to think for a moment.

"Colin killed him. He's one of us."

Matt felt as if the breath had been knocked out off him. _Oh Jared, you were so much more out of control than I could ever have imagined._ He realized Tomo was observing him carefully, reading the confusion on his face.

"You're not his creator."

It was a statement, more than a question. Matt shook his head. He remained silent, fearing his inner struggle would be perceptible in his voice. If he remembered well, he saw Colin last in Morocco; it felt like a long time ago. He had often asked himself why Jared had never brought his closest friend into the presence of his band members again. Now he knew.

"Help me to understand how he knew and why he did that to Shannon," Tomo interrupted Matt's musings.

"Colin was supposed to attend our concert that night."

Recalling how excited Jared had been, Matt also remembered how nervously he had reacted when he realized Matt had overheard his conversation with Colin on the phone the night before. Stubbornly, he clung to a sparkle of hope. _You were going to tell me everything that night, weren't you Jared? You wanted to show me how strong you had become. I know you wanted me to be proud of you._

"He may have seen the two of you leave the concert hall," Matt continued, noticing Tomo was still scrutinizing his face. "He would have _known_ his creator had died." Suddenly, Matt noticed a look of uncertainty on Tomo's face.

"Jared's really dead then?" Tomo mumbled.

"Why did you doubt that?"

"I guess I never understood ... wanted to believe he could have done that to his brother, I mean Shannon ..." Tomo's voice drifted off.

A feeling of lassitude fell on Matt. This whole vengeance situation didn't concern him. He wanted to be left alone to cherish the memories of a chapter in his life he was still unwilling to close. Tomo was a part of that chapter too, however, and a living reminder that matters weren't resolved yet.

"I don't have the answers to all questions, Tomo," Matt sighed, "Just guesses, and yours may be as good as mine. Shannon was always the first to stand up to Jared when it was needed. He never let himself be dominated by his brother, while we were all often too eager to please him, to make him proud of us, to give in to his every wimp even. That night ... Jared never asked Shannon what _he_ wanted, where he wanted to be. He just made the decision for him."

Tomo was chewing his bottom lip and Matt was at last reminded of the sweetly insecure young man he had known those last years. He smiled sadly.

"I guess Shannon wanted to be with you," Matt concluded softly.

Tomo closed his eyes for a few moments. Matt considered whether he should leave him there and resume his own task. He was about to turn when Tomo looked back up at him, the cold stare firmly in place again.

"I need the crossbow."

_No!_ Matt didn't even want to consider it.

"I don't know where it is," he said.

_LIAR!!!_

It took all of Matt's experience and self-control to hide the effect of that mental blow on him. He wondered if Tomo himself understood how strong he had become. At least, it was clear he made no scruples anymore about using whatever powers he was aware of.

"You owe me that," Tomo replied, ignoring Matt's statement.

Silently, Matt looked at Tomo for a long time before resolutely turning around. Coming from the bushes surrounding them, he heard nervous whispering and some irritated scowls of disapproval. Of course, every word of their conversation had been overheard. Rustling noises accompanied them all the way to a remote part of the cemetery. In between broken tombstones of seemingly abandoned graves, a tumulus rose up. Turning his head, Matt saw Tomo make an ironic sneer towards the trinity symbol carved in the wooden entrance gate of the grave mound. Smiling faintly, he pushed the door open and invited Tomo in.

"Where?" Tomo asked, his nose rippling at the familiar smell of scented oil. Matt had advanced towards the stone coffin in the middle of the tumulus. He answered Tomo's question with a wordless gesture and Tomo seemed to be taken aback for a moment.

"Are you afraid to see what awaits all of us?" Matt asked him, "Or is it that you've become hesitant at last at interrupting his eternal peace?"

Tomo answered his question by pushing the heavy top off the coffin. Apparently, he hadn't expected the sight that awaited him though, Matt reflected. Not enough time had gone by to make the remnants of Jared's body disappear in a cloud of dust, as eventually it would. The process had set in however, and his body had already become almost transparent, erasing the agonized look on his face that had been there when Matt found his body. His features reflected an unearthly peace now.

Matt's musings were disturbed when Tomo suddenly grabbed the crossbow, that had been sharing Jared's resting place, and promptly left the tumulus, never turning around.

"Farewell then, Tomo," Matt whispered with a wry smile. Placing the red rose on Jared's chest where before the crossbow had been, he thankfully enjoyed the regained peace inside the burial mound. His hope of spending the rest of the night in silent meditation was suddenly shattered by loud shrieks coming from outside the tumulus. Wondering if The Others had finally decided to take matters into their own hands, he went outside.

Tomo was engaged in a violent fight with a raging creature Matt barely recognized as Colin. Their angry yells were accompanied by enthusiastic cheering, coming from the darkness around them. This was all fairly amusing The Others. One of them may have dearly paid his involvement in the struggle, as near the entrance of the tumulus lay a motionless corpse.

Matt observed that though Tomo seemed to be stronger than his aggressor, he had been taken by surprise and might be loosing the fight. Only moments later, his fears were confirmed. Tomo sank down, after having received a violent blow to his head. Triumphantly, Colin grabbed the crossbow and ran off.

Nearing Tomo's motionless body, Matt noticed a small item lying close by. Picking it up, he saw it was Colin's wallet. Inside was a bill for a rented yacht, harboured at a small coastal village a little up north of Boston. Annoyed, Matt turned the paper around in his hands. He didn't want to reconsider his decision to refrain from interfering in this blood feud. The question soon become pointless, as wallet and bill were snatched out of his hands. Still panting, Tomo threw a quick look on the paper before glancing at Matt.

"Heading up the coast, you'll find it 25 miles from here; it's rather small," Matt told him, surprising himself. Watching Tomo disappear into the night, he wondered why staying impartial proved to be so much more difficult than he had imagined.

 

***

 

Boston coastal area, Marina, Tomo

 

Probably, I was running into a trap with my eyes wide open. I wasn't in the mood for playing tactical games though. I knew now that I didn't have to outsmart Colin. He was way "younger" than me, and I could have easily overpowered him if that despicable creature hadn't tackled me from behind. His hysterical cackling as I slammed the crossbow in his face, had made me wonder if there was any rational motive behind those scum taking Colin's side. Maybe this was just a game to them.

It was still dark when I reached the marina. Sensing no other presence around, I went to have a look at Colin's yacht. I knew nothing about sailing ships, but this one seemed to me a bit large to be steered by one man. Then again, Colin had surprised me before with his hidden talents. He sure had found himself a nice little boat, luxurious and well equipped. I stepped in and made myself comfortable in one of the storage rooms, prepared to wait as long as was needed.

When Colin finally showed up, he added a new element to the equation. He had brought his baby son. I know it wasn't going to stop me, but it did complicate the situation. I didn't want to wreck another innocent soul's life, or at least, I wanted to keep the damage to a minimum. I wasn't going to kill Colin in front of his son.

Sensing the two of them entering the bridge, I realized we were going to take the sea. Colin used the ship's engine to leave the marina and set sail once we were in open waters. Soon after, he put his son to bed in one of the bunks of the sleeping accommodations. Jimmy's babbling had long since died down when I finally left my hiding space.

Colin was waiting for me on the front deck. In the moonlight, I could clearly make out his features. He had loaded the crossbow, letting it rest on his heaved left arm, his right index finger on the trigger. He wasn't aiming at me yet. For a long time, we just stared at each other. His eyes were a reflection of my own inner coldness, covering a pain too deep to recognize. He thought we were even, both having lost the most precious being in our lives. I suspected there was something he hadn't counted upon though.

"I didn't kill Jared," I told him. The confusion is his eyes told me he had recognized the truth in my voice. I saw him struggle to wrap his mind around the thought that he had killed his lover for the wrong reason.

It was interesting to see how much my revelation had shaken him up. I remembered him as an intelligent man, witty and brawling, but also serious and hard working. Right now he almost looked as mind-struck and dumb as those pathetic creatures from the cemetery. I had been giving them some thought. Maybe they were orphans reduced to a near state of brainlessness after having been abandoned by their creators. I suppose I should be grateful Matt had "saved" me from that faith. Colin couldn't have had much guidance from Jared though. They barely had had time to see each other once filming was over.

A little voice in my head was nagging me that Colin's confusion may also be related to some unresolved feelings between him and the man he had so mercilessly killed. There wasn't a bone in my body ready to accept he could have felt anything even remotely resembling love for Shannon though. The thought simply short-circuited my brain.

"Don't worry, I don't expect you to let me off the hook for Jared's death," I spat at him.

Suddenly, I detected a movement in the water out of the corner of my eye. Tall shadows were cleaving through the waves surrounding the boat. Incredulously, I realized several enormous silvery-white sharks were circling around us, their pale skin reflected by the moonlight. I knew sharks were present in waters all over the globe, but why this gathering here and now?

My "sixth sense" had never left Colin, and I avoided his first shot with amazing ease. I had to throw myself against the rail of the yacht though, and was dangerously close to falling off. Bracing himself against a mast, Colin started to reload the crossbow. I was a sitting duck for him to shoot at. It might be a better idea to return inside. On the other hand, there was Colin's little boy to consider. Turning my head, I suddenly noticed Colin's first shot had in fact destroyed the handle of the door leading inside. _Clever!_

Ducking aside to avoid his second shot, I realized I had to get closer to Colin, before he could reload again. A sudden movement of the boat nearly had me hit the water. Grasping the rail again, I saw a cold blue eye staring up at me before disappearing again into deeper waters. _Dammit!_ Could it be that those sharks were actually a part of Colin's game?

I managed to get a little closer to Colin, before I had to throw myself to the rail again to avoid his next shot. Either he was really bad at handling the crossbow, or he was relying on the sharks to finish the job. Receiving an enormous splash of water in my face, thrown up by a huge tail, I was momentarily blinded. That's it, I thought, frantically rubbing my eyes. I felt the boat swing to one side, pushed by a huge gust.

Nothing happened. No arrow pierced my body, though Colin had had enough time to reload. When I opened my eyes, I saw he had been thrown off balance, hit by a boom set in motion by the wind and the unexpected movement of the boat. Seeing my chance, I launched forward.

Panic and hatred were both battling on his face when he realized he had lost his advantage over me. We both knew I was the stronger one, but he fought me with a strength fed by despair. We were ripping at each other's flesh with claws and teeth, more like wild animals than the human beings we once were. In the end, I managed to throw him off me. Grabbing one of the silver arrows lying nearby, I went after him, ready to plant it in his body, wherever I could. Then the sharks hit the boat again, and Colin fell overboard.

I didn't know what the sharks' intentions had been by moving the boat. They may have had strange behaviour, but they proved to have genuine shark instincts. Sensing Colin's blood, they immediately threw themselves at him. I had never experienced a sight as horrific as that in my entire life, and yet, I wasn't sure if I could trust the sharks to take efficiently care of the situation. Grabbing the crossbow, I quickly reloaded it and sent an arrow through Colin's forehead. Seeing him disappear in the waves, I realized he never uttered a scream.

Exhaustion must have made me collapse right after that. I woke up because Jimmy was insistently shaking my body.

"Daddee?" the little boy asked, with wide-open eyes. Still not completely awake, I wondered how he had managed to get outside. Something wasn't right.

"Daddy had to go away. Don't worry, I'll take you to your mummy," I murmured. Easier said than done, but it was the only decent thing left for me to do. The last thing I wanted to do before looking for some peace of my own.

"Daddee gone?" the toddler asked.

Something was shifting in his look. He sure had strange eyes and didn't seem nearly as confused as I had expected him to be. Taking him in my arms, I tried to crawl up. He threw his arms around me, as if he wasn't sure I wouldn't drop him. I barely managed to get on my knees, already shaking from the effort. Suddenly two bloodshot eyes, filled with hideous hatred, were boring into mine. _Damned my unreliable instincts._ The pain caused by razor sharp teeth sinking into my throat, was excruciating. For a fraction of a second, I thought about fighting back. Then I let it all go, closing my eyes and recalling the memory of a pair of soft hazel eyes looking up into mine.

 

***

Marina, Matt

 

There was a small gathering on the main quay. People had surprisingly quickly picked up on the rumour of a stray boat being towed back towards the marina. It had been found drifting in the open sea. Nobody knew what had happened to it, but rumours had it there was only one survivor.

Matt observed them from the distance. That morning he had found an interesting email on his computer, sent to him by Kim Bordenave. In a confusing and mysterious way, the letter talked about an interesting proposition for him, involving the teaching of a very talented pupil. She had urged him to go to the docks that morning to meet him.

Closing his eyes, Matt recalled the silent scream resounding through his head that night. He had lost another one of his children. He knew he shouldn't accept Kim's proposition, and yet he couldn't stop hoping that one day he would be able to do things right.


	7. Adrift and at Peace (Beside You in Time. Epilogue)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Afterwards. Tomo's POV.

Title: Adrift and at Peace (Beside You in Time. Epilogue)  
Author: Leto's Ghanima  
Type: RPS  
Fandom: 30 Seconds To Mars  
Pairing: Tomo/Shannon. You'd never guess if I didn't tell you though.  
Rating: R.  
Warnings: m/m slash, AU.  
Disclaimer: This is fiction, and it's not going to make me rich.  
Beta: Myr  
A/N: They were still haunting me. I had to give them - and myself - some peace. Don't worry if this isn't making much sense to you ^_^.  
Mood creation: Nine Inch Nails - And All That Could Have Been Disc 2.

 

*******

 

He watched the sand eddying, set in motion by the waves. Like a cloud of tiny dust particles, the little grains reflected the pale source of light above them. He couldn't tell if it was the sun or the moon. The intensity of the light didn't change much down there, and since he had lost all notion of time, it wasn't that important anyway.

Something must have set those little grains in motion though. He preferred not to think about it for now. Turning his head a little, he buried his nose into soft flesh covering a muscled stomach. It was the most sensually fulfilling position he could think of, lying between the other's thighs, one arm hooking a leg of the still body underneath him. Pushing up that leg a little higher, he kissed the soft insides of the thigh. A strong musky smell filling his nose, he wondered about the paradox of his senses' perceptions being more real now than they had been in life. _Or were they just memories?_

More dancing sand grains. This time, he felt the wave curling over his back. Something big indeed had slipped past them, moving swiftly and stealthy. Squeezing his eyes, he wondered if he could consider it a delusion of his senses. Maybe, if he wished very hard for it, it wouldn't be there.

But then the body underneath him might disappear as well and he wouldn't be able to cope with that. Again.

He opened his eyes to reassure himself, no longer trusting the message transmitted to his mind solely by his nerve endings. Sight and touch told him the same story though, while his eyes followed his fingertip tracing a thin line of dark hair from bellybutton down. If both of his senses told him the truth though, then the huge grey-silver body he had caught in the corner of his eye was real as well.

He looked up into the other's face; long, dark eyelashes resting on cheeks in a face breathing peaceful sleep. _Oblivious strength and yet unbearable vulnerability._ The leap towards the other side had in no way altered his obsessive protectiveness. The idea of that serene face being accessible to waves, light beams, and who knows what else was out there, was difficult to accept. After all, the other's colourful symbolic shield hadn't fulfilled its purpose the first time around.

Crawling upwards, he was careful not to hurt the other with the clumsiness of his elbows and knees while turning his body around. This time, he caused a hectic ballet of silvery glitters himself. Moreover, they started to float a little, a particular unpleasant sensation. Quickly, he pushed the other's slightly shorter body down, before spooning it. Burying his face into the other's neck, dark locks itching his nose, he waited for his heart pace to slow down again.

The unearthly silence around him was comforting. At least his ears didn't record any messages of threat. Drawing faith from this, he let his hand wander, from thigh over bottom upwards, debating with himself how far he would go. He had the distinct feeling the other was smiling. His fingertips brushed an oversensitive nipple and his suspicion was confirmed by a sharp intake of breath and a little snort. He had to bite his bottom lip, lest he'd grin himself. Confidently, he reached back down between the other's thighs. A heavy sigh sounded like music to his ears, acoustic waves cutting through the currents surrounding them. More contradiction, but he couldn't care less, whatever, as long as it helped to shut out his fears concerning that thing moving around them. Was that a dorsal fin?

He pushed and slid inside, his muscles singing a homecoming song. The body he had buried himself deeply into, received him with equal fervour. Pushing and pulling, they grabbed on to each other, since there was nothing else to grab on to. Inevitably, their heated coupling made them float again in a feverish sand cloud. Somehow they managed to achieve what they wanted, fulfilling their bodies' desire, even if gravity was betraying them. They laughed over it, in between groans and moans, intensifying their passionate rutting until they pushed each other over the edge. Then they slowly descended to the bottom again.

Entwining their fingers, he decided that it had to be the sun whose beams were caressing them. Filtered through the water, they didn't hurt him as they used to; they just felt comfortably warm. Therefore, he didn't appreciate the huge grey shadow gliding above them, obscuring the light and blocking the heat source. Reaching out, he felt its pale grey skin was slippery cold, which was kind of sad, he concluded, moving closer against the source of sweet heat between his arms. Finally at ease, he met the creature's crystalline blue eyes and read nothing menacing in them. Acceptance, at last? Maybe they could start forgetting the pain and the fear now.

 

The end.


End file.
